Spice Up Your Pregame

Pregame getting a little stale? Fear no more, we’ve compiled a list of drinking activities more exciting than the classic fall-back Ring of Fire to amp up your weekend (or week) nights

Structural implications of conserved aspartate residues located in tropomyosin’s coiled-coil core

Polar residues lying between adjacent α-helical chains of coiled-coils often contribute to coiled-coil curvature and flexibility, while more typical core hydrophobic residues anneal the chains together. In tropomyosins, ranging from smooth and skeletal muscle to cytoplasmic isoforms, a highly conserved Asp at residue 137 places negative charges within the tropomyosin coiled-coil core in a position which may affect the conformation needed for tropomyosin binding and regulatory movements on actin. Proteolytic susceptibility suggested that substituting a canonical Leu for the naturally occurring Asp at residue 137 increases inter-chain rigidity by stabilizing the tropomyosin coiled-coil. Using molecular dynamics, we now directly assess changes in coiled-coil curvature and flexibility caused by such mutants. Although the coiled-coil flexibility is modestly diminished near the residue 137 mutation site, as expected, a delocalized increase in flexibility along the overall coiled-coil is observed. Even though the average shape of the D137L tropomyosin is straighter than that of wild-type tropomyosin, it is still capable of binding actin due to this increase in flexibility. We conclude that the conserved, non-canonical Asp-137 destabilizes the local structure resulting in a local flexible region in the middle of tropomyosin that normally is important for tropomyosin steady-state equilibrium position on actin

Simulation of neuroplasticity in a CNN-based in-silico model of neurodegeneration of the visual system

The aim of this work was to enhance the biological feasibility of a deep convolutional neural network-based in-silico model of neurodegeneration of the visual system by equipping it with a mechanism to simulate neuroplasticity. Therefore, deep convolutional networks of multiple sizes were trained for object recognition tasks and progressively lesioned to simulate neurodegeneration of the visual cortex. More specifically, the injured parts of the network remained injured while we investigated how the added retraining steps were able to recover some of the model’s object recognition baseline performance. The results showed with retraining, model object recognition abilities are subject to a smoother and more gradual decline with increasing injury levels than without retraining and, therefore, more similar to the longitudinal cognition impairments of patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Moreover, with retraining, the injured model exhibits internal activation patterns similar to those of the healthy baseline model when compared to the injured model without retraining. Furthermore, we conducted this analysis on a network that had been extensively pruned, resulting in an optimized number of parameters or synapses. Our findings show that this network exhibited remarkably similar capability to recover task performance with decreasingly viable pathways through the network. In conclusion, adding a retraining step to the in-silico setup that simulates neuroplasticity improves the model’s biological feasibility considerably and could prove valuable to test different rehabilitation approaches in-silico

Meaning in life in psychotherapy: The perspective of experienced psychotherapists

Objective Our goal was to explore the meaning experienced psychotherapists derive from providing psychotherapy, their beliefs about the role of meaning in life (MIL) in psychotherapy, how they worked with MIL with a client who explicitly presented concerns about MIL, and how they worked with a different client for whom MIL was a secondary and more implicit concern. Method Thirteen experienced psychotherapists were interviewed and data were analyzed using consensual qualitative research. Results Therapists derived self-oriented meaning (e.g., feeling gratified, fulfilled, connected) and other-oriented meaning (helping others, making the world a better place) from providing psychotherapy. They believed that MIL is fundamental and underlies all human concerns, including those brought to therapy. In contrast to the clients who had implicit MIL concerns, clients who explicitly presented MIL concerns were reported to have more interpersonal problems and physical problems, but about the same amount of psychological distress and loss/grief. Therapists used insight-oriented interventions, support, action-oriented interventions, and exploratory interventions to work with MIL with both types of clients, but used more exploratory interventions with implicit than explicit MIL clients. Conclusions MIL is a salient topic for experienced, existentially oriented psychotherapists; they work with MIL extensively with some clients in psychotherapy. We recommend that therapists receive training to work with MIL in therapy, and that they pay attention to MIL concerns when they conduct psychotherapy. We also recommend additional research on MIL in psychotherapy

Growth and Morbidity of Gambian Infants are Influenced by Maternal Milk Oligosaccharides and Infant Gut Microbiota.

Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) play an important role in the health of an infant as substrate for beneficial gut bacteria. Little is known about the effects of HMO composition and its changes on the morbidity and growth outcomes of infants living in areas with high infection rates. Mother's HMO composition and infant gut microbiota from 33 Gambian mother/infant pairs at 4, 16, and 20 weeks postpartum were analyzed for relationships between HMOs, microbiota, and infant morbidity and growth. The data indicate that lacto-N-fucopentaose I was associated with decreased infant morbidity, and 3'-sialyllactose was found to be a good indicator of infant weight-for-age. Because HMOs, gut microbiota, and infant health are interrelated, the relationship between infant health and their microbiome were analyzed. While bifidobacteria were the dominant genus in the infant gut overall, Dialister and Prevotella were negatively correlated with morbidity, and Bacteroides was increased in infants with abnormal calprotectin. Mothers nursing in the wet season (July to October) produced significantly less oligosaccharides compared to those nursing in the dry season (November to June). These results suggest that specific types and structures of HMOs are sensitive to environmental conditions, protective of morbidity, predictive of growth, and correlated with specific microbiota

Caste Matters: Perceived Discrimination among Women in Rural India

Purpose: To examine the relationship of caste and class with perceived discrimination among pregnant women from rural western India. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to 170 pregnant women in rural Gujarat, India, who were enrolled in a longitudinal cohort study. Everyday Discrimination Scale and Experiences of Discrimination questionnaires were used to assess perceived discrimination and response to discrimination. Based on self-reported caste, women were classified to three categories with increasing historical disadvantage: General, Other Backward Castes (OBC), and Scheduled Caste or Tribes (SC/ST). Socioeconomic class was determined using standardized Kuppuswamy scale. Regression models for count and binomial data were used to examine association of caste and class with experience of discrimination and response to discrimination. Results: 68% of women experienced discrimination. After adjusting for confounders, there was a consistent trend and association of discrimination with caste but not class. In comparison to General Caste, lower caste (OBC, SC/ST) women were more likely to 1) experience discrimination (OBC OR: 2.2, SC/ST: 4.1; p-trend: 0.01), 2) have a greater perceived discrimination score (OBC IRR: 1.3, SC/ST: 1.5; p-trend: 0.07), 3) accept discrimination (OBC OR: 6.4, SC/ST: 7.6; p-trend: \u3c 0.01), and 4) keep to herself about discrimination (OBC OR: 2.7, SC/ST: 3.6; p-trend: 0.04). Conclusion: The differential experience of discrimination by lower caste women in comparison to upper caste women and their response to such experiences highlight the importance of studying discrimination to understand existing caste-based disparities

“I Always Worry about What Might Happen Ahead”: Implementing Safer Conception Services in the Current Environment of Reproductive Counseling for HIV-Affected Men and Women in Uganda

We explored healthcare provider perspectives and practices regarding safer conception counseling for HIV-affected clients. Methods. We conducted semistructured interviews with 38 providers (medical and clinical officers, nurses, peer counselors, and village health workers) delivering care to HIV-infected clients across 5 healthcare centres in Mbarara District, Uganda. Interview transcripts were analyzed using content analysis. Results. Of 38 providers, 76% were women with median age 34 years (range 24–57). First, we discuss providers\u27 reproductive counseling practices. Emergent themes include that providers (1) assess reproductive goals of HIV-infected female clients frequently, but infrequently for male clients; (2) offer counseling focused on "family planning" and maternal and child health; (3) empathize with the importance of having children for HIV-affected clients; and (4) describe opportunities to counsel HIV-serodiscordant couples. Second, we discuss provider-level challenges that impede safer conception counseling. Emergent themes included the following: (1) providers struggle to translate reproductive rights language into individualized risk reduction given concerns about maternal health and HIV transmission and (2) providers lack safer conception training and support needed to provide counseling. Discussion. Tailored guidelines and training are required for providers to implement safer conception counseling. Such support must respond to provider experiences with adverse HIV-related maternal and child outcomes and a national emphasis on pregnancy prevention

A National Action Plan for Promoting Preconception Health and Health Care in the United States (2012–2014)

Preconception health and health care (PCHHC) has gained increasing popularity as a key prevention strategy for improving outcomes for women and infants, both domestically and internationally. The Action Plan for the National Initiative on Preconception Health and Health Care: A Report of the PCHHC Steering Committee (2012–2014) provides a model that states, communities, public, and private organizations can use to help guide strategic planning for promoting preconception care projects. Since 2005, a national public–private PCHHC initiative has worked to create and implement recommendations on this topic. Leadership and funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention combined with the commitment of maternal and child health leaders across the country brought together key partners from the public and private sector to provide expertise and technical assistance to develop an updated national action plan for the PCHHC Initiative. Key activities for this process included the identification of goals, objectives, strategies, actions, and anticipated timelines for the five work-groups that were established as part of the original PCHHC Initiative. These are further described in the action plan. To assist other groups doing similar work, this article discusses the approach members of the PCHHC Initiative took to convene local, state, and national leaders to enhance the implementation of preconception care nationally through accomplishments, lessons learned, and projections for future directions

Addressing and Inspiring Vaccine Confidence in Black, Indigenous, and People of Color During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic

During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, we have witnessed profound health inequities suffered by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). These manifested as differential access to testing early in the pandemic, rates of severe disease and death 2-3 times higher than white Americans, and, now, significantly lower vaccine uptake compared with their share of the population affected by COVID-19. This article explores the impact of these COVID-19 inequities (and the underlying cause, structural racism) on vaccine acceptance in BIPOC populations, ways to establish trustworthiness of healthcare institutions, increase vaccine access for BIPOC communities, and inspire confidence in COVID-19 vaccines

RAHI-SATHI Indo-U.S. Collaboration: The Evolution of a Trainee-Led Twinning Model in Global Health Into a Multidisciplinary Collaborative Program

BACKGROUND: In recent years there has been a surge in the number of global health programs operated by academic institutions. However, most of the existing programs describe partnerships that are primarily faculty-driven and supported by extramural funding. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: Research and Advocacy for Health in India (RAHI, or pathfinder in Hindi) and Support and Action Towards Health-Equity in India (SATHI, or partnership in Hindi) are 2 interconnected, collaborative efforts between the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) and Charutar Arogya Mandal (CAM), a medical college and a tertiary care center in rural western India. The RAHI-SATHI program is the culmination of a series of student/trainee-led research and capacity strengthening initiatives that received institutional support in the form of faculty mentorship and seed funding. RAHI-SATHI\u27s trainee-led twinning approach overcomes traditional barriers faced by global health programs. Trainees help mitigate geographical barriers by acting as a bridge between members from different institutions, garner cultural insight through their ability to immerse themselves in a community, and overcome expertise limitations through pre-planned structured mentorship from faculty of both institutions. Trainees play a central role in cultivating trust among the team members and, in the process, they acquire personal leadership skills that may benefit them in their future careers. CONCLUSION: This paradigm of trainee-led twinning partnership promotes sustainability in an uncertain funding climate and provides a roadmap for conducting foundational work that is essential for the development of a broad, university-wide global health program